I said to my wife yesterday if one believes in "an eye for an eye" Vick could be thrown into a gladiator ring with another of these guys and asked to fight with knives to the death. That would stop this practice real fast.

We have three dogs and it breaks my heart to see this. I really don't get it.

I wonder where Dr. Stone would place this on his "the scale of evil".

It is well known one of the first signs of a psychopathic personality disorder is the person who tortures helpless animals as a child.

Does your dog ever make you laugh – on purpose? Does he know he’s being funny? An even stranger question – does your dog find things funny?

There are countless stories of dog antics and behavior that are funny, but most of those you’d have to say are unintentional. Humorous behavior may be repeated because of the positive reaction received. In this case, you can’t say the dog has a sense of humor, but is acting on positive reinforcement.

But dogs may be a little smarter than that. Just as some people enjoy making others laugh, it would seem, so do some dogs. Author Stanley Coren tells of his Cairn Terrier, Flint, who frequently seemed to try to amuse his owners. On one occasion, Stanley’s wife Karen was having friends over for coffee. Flint hung around the guests, perhaps hoping for a morsel of food. Karen shooed the dog away and told him to go find something interesting to do. Flint obediently left, only to return with one of Karen’s undergarments in his mouth. Coren writes, “Evading capture, he proceeded to flagrantly snap it from side to side with great joy—to the amusement of the company and the dismay of my wife.”

Did the terrier know he was being funny? Hard to say, but Coren says Flint did get a great deal of enjoyment out of it.

Now, there are many levels of humor. There’s basic physical humor like slapstick, up to very high-level humor that requires visualization and imagination to appreciate, such as the type comedian Steven Wright sodryly delivers. A dog’s world of humor would have to be mostly on the physical level, through simply behaving in a goofy manner, or playing little tricks on you.

Of course, some really intelligent dogs may even enjoy a little psychological humor. One dog owner blogs, “I guess you could say… that I startle easily. And now, I live with The Crow - she's an unusually smart dog with a wicked sense of humor. She's decided it's funny to ambush me from the shower stall. Ha ha. Ha. Now I know she's likely to be there, and it doesn't scare me anymore ... not much, at least. Still, there's always a small start when I don't realize she's in there and I turn to see this.”

It’s really not so hard to believe that dogs have the mental prowess to grasp humor, since they so readily grasp the concept of play. Dogs completely understand the difference between play and something more serious, and are careful to make the distinction. For example, one tiny Yorkshire Terrier named Missy is exceedingly careful to make sure the line between play and not-play is very clear. Missy loves to growl and yap ferociously when playing a game with a person. But she’ll abruptly call a time out by running over and licking her human opponent most humbly, as if to say, “Hey, you know this is only a game, right? You know I wouldn’t hurt you.” (As if her five pounds of fluff could ever be a threat.) Once Missy is satisfied that all parties understand that it’s only a game, she’ll go right back to it, acting out her savage beast within.

W. H. "Hank" Halliday, of Wolf Awareness Inc. in Ontario, Canada contends that if dogs have a personality, why not a sense of humor? “Since personalities are a fact in these canids (dogs and wolves), I would suggest humor cannot be far behind. When my dog plays, it is not mechanical. He changes the rules to have "fun" with me. He certainly teases me and I would suggest that teasing is a form of humor.”

As these stories illustrate, if you’ve ever suspected your dog was making you the punch line to his joke… you were probably right.

I don't know what to think of Vick. As someone who has three dogs I find it hard to understand why people would think it a sport to torture lower animals than us, but this is not new. I am not clear how cultural this is. I don't see anyone even dare ask. But to me anyone who thinks this is cool has their ass on backwards. And we see children being brought up to respect this and admire this sadistic "game"? Just another chapter in the book titled "worst of man".

I am a Pitbull owner...I have owned Pitbulls since the Ocean's drank Atlantis..My first Dog was a Pitbull back in 79' and I continued to own Three. Actually..Own is not the right word..I continue to have a great friends from the Pitbull family...My current Best Friends are Named Brutis, Leonidas and Ghengis...They are probably one of my greatest friends..I could never imagine putting them into a ring to tear or get torn apart by another pitbull NOR could I imagine even thinking of putting one of Mans greatest friends into the ring to get mauled for my profit.

These People think that it shows how big your pecker is to watch their dog be put though hell so you can smile and cash a check. This actually does not increase the size of you pecker it shrinks your brain and you turn into a hairless ape..Because that's what you are..A fraggin animal...

If these people want to show how tough they are..Don't fight your dog's..Train and then go fight another human..Who is just as trained as you..Unless of corse you are a pussy like Michael Vick and the rest of the Scum of the Earth that has to use pitbulls to make their man stick bigger...

Funny thing is...These Dogs have more Courage, Fighting Spirt and bigger balls then the guys that fight them.

The indictment of star quarterback Michael Vick on dog fighting charges has shone a light on a vicious blood sport that appears to be thriving in the US.

Evidence gathered by animal welfare groups suggests that, despite the fact dog fighting is illegal in all 50 US states, it is both widespread and growing. An estimated 40,000 people in the US are thought to be involved in "professional" dog fighting, using some 250,000 dogs. These dog fighters train their pit bull terriers for maximum aggression before putting them in the ring to fight matches, publicised by underground networks. Crowds watch and often place bets as the dogs, their jaws trained to grip ferociously hard, seek to tear each other apart for an hour or more. As much as $100,000 (£50,000) can be staked on a fight between champion dogs, according to the Humane Society of the United States. The dog that wins will live to fight again. But the loser is likely either to die from blood loss, shock and injury, or be killed by its owner as no longer profitable. Meanwhile, tens of thousands more people - often gang members - take part in so-called street fighting, where dogs are pitted against each other in impromptu bouts in alleys or empty buildings. Dogs 'executed' Court papers in Vick's case expose some of the brutality involved in a practice that seems to be concentrated in America's South and eastern states.

The American footballer and three others, all of whom have agreed plea deals, are accused of running an organised dog fighting operation called Bad Newz Kennels over several years. When Vick's property in Virginia was raided, 54 pit bull terriers were found, some with apparent dog fighting injuries, as well as training equipment like a treadmill and a stick used to pry open dogs' jaws. The men took their prize dogs across state lines to fight and wagered thousands of dollars on the outcome, the court documents say. They also "executed" eight dogs that did not perform well in training, with hanging, drowning and electrocution among the methods used, prosecutors allege. Animal welfare groups point out that the 54 dogs found by the authorities will almost certainly have to be put down too. Although properly-raised pit bull terriers can make good pets, according to reputable Georgia breeder Tara Vickers, fighting dogs - having been trained to attack other animals - are impossible to re-house safely. In the UK, the breeding, sale or exchange of pit bull terriers is banned under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 and people who already own pit bulls must keep them muzzled and on a lead in public. Gang culture No-one knows what motivated 27-year-old Vick, with his multi-million dollar American football contract, to venture into the murky world of dog fighting.

But there is evidence to suggest that its growth nationally is related to its adoption as a part of violent street culture. John Goodwin, an expert on animal fighting for the Humane Society, says one way to track the prevalence of dog fighting is to monitor the number of pit bulls coming into animal rescue shelters. Whereas 15 years ago 2-3% of the dogs brought in were pit bulls, the breed now makes up 30% of the total nationally and 50% in some areas, he said. One shelter in Mississippi reported taking in 300 pit bulls, of which 60% had scars indicating they had fought. "Urban areas are where a lot of the growth has been and the shelters get inundated with the castaways from dog fighting," Mr Goodwin said. "Dog fighting has become popular in gang culture." He cites a study by the Chicago Police Department, which found that of 332 people arrested over three years for dog fighting and animal cruelty, three-fifths had known gang affiliations. Of course, many pit bulls, particularly in the rural South, do not make it into shelters, Mr Goodwin adds, because the owners simply kill them if they are no longer of use. Pumped with steroids Life as a fighting dog is neither pleasant nor long, according to investigations by animal welfare groups such as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) and the Humane Society.

Pit bull puppies bred by an organised operation will be taunted to make them more vicious and kept chained and hungry. They will be forced to run on treadmills with "bait" animals such as cats dangled in front of them - the reward usually being to maul them afterwards - and encouraged to hang by their jaws from chains to strengthen their bite. Their strength built up, they then progress to "test" fights against older animals. Only the young dogs that display sufficient aggression and "gameness" - the willingness to carry on fighting even when exhausted and bleeding - will be used in competitive matches. The others are usually culled. The fights, staged in a small, square enclosed pit, can last an hour or more. Some breeders cut off their dogs' ears so that rivals cannot bite onto them, file their teeth to make them sharper and pump them with steroids, said Dahpna Nachminovitch, of Peta. While the dogs keep winning, they can earn their owners thousands of dollars in gambling profits and by producing puppies with a "desirable" bloodline. But pit bulls that lose or give up in the ring will not normally live long, either dying from their injuries or being despatched by their owners. 'Power and control' So how do dog fighters justify the suffering caused to their animals?

Dr Randall Lockwood, a psychologist and senior vice president of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, says that historically dog fighters did not see the dogs as sentient, feeling creatures, but did profess to care for them. However, he says, there seems to have been a shift recently towards more brutal and vengeful treatment of the animals as dog fighting has been increasingly adopted by gang culture. "Part of the psychology of dog fighting is the same as other forms of animal cruelty - a lot of it is about power and control," he said. Add to this the dog fighter's identification with his animal in the ring - and desire to win "bragging rights" - and the scope for violence is great. "The dog fighter sees his dog's victory as having a direct reflection on his strength and manliness, which I think is one of the reasons that we see brutal treatment of animals that don't perform well," Dr Lockwood said. "The failure of the animal is seen as a personal failure, an embarrassment, and something where you need to prove your strength and dominance by getting even." Strong penalties Those convicted of dog fighting in the US face up to five years in prison and a possible $250,000 fine. But the problem for the authorities is tracking down either the secretive organised networks or the individuals involved in street fights. Law enforcement officials are cracking down on dog fighting, in part because of frequent links to drugs and other organised crime, said Mr Goodwin. But the entertainment some find in its brutality - and more importantly the money involved - still make it irresistible to many people. "If you have $100,000 bet on two grand champion dogs that are fighting, someone is going to win big and someone is going to lose big," Mr Goodwin said. "But there is a potential for financial gain - that's why there have to be strong penalties there to discourage people."